Japanese Mitsubishi Motors reported quarterly losses today and warned of its first loss in three years this full fiscal year.

I mentioned last summer that the financial turmoil posed a major risk for us, but the situation we find ourselves in right now is far worse than I ever expected, Mitsubishi Motors Corp. President Osamu Masuko said according to the Associated Press.

Mitsubishi said Wednesday it posted a loss of 17.6 billion yen for the fiscal third quarter, compared to a net profit of 27.3 billion yen in the same period a year ago. Sales declined 30 percent on year to 444.1 billion yen in the period.

The company forecasted a net loss of 60 billion yen ($670 million) in the fiscal year ending March and announced measures to cut costs such as reducing executive pay to 40 percent.

The automakers are challenged by the economic downturn which forced may of them to cut production as global demand for vehicles diminishes.